As our country grapples with the traumatic aftermath of the Trayvon Martin killing, we ask ourselves, can this crisis bring us together? How do we begin to address an issue as systemic as racial profiling?

“I wish [Dr. King] knew that since his death we have searched for the soul of this nation. We have begun to ask questions that have never been asked. We have challenged each other in ways that we have yet to do. We yearn for a post-racial America.”

Clearly we’re not there yet. According to one study, 86 percent of the new stories on TV that featured black men involved crime.

One of the challenges that organizations have taken up is moving this discussion from the personal narratives that intrigue us about the crime to the larger societal problems that need to be addressed, including the depictions of black men in the media.

Video: Howard University students and alumni stand against the killing of Trayvon Martin in this video, “Am I Suspicious?”

“This struck a nerve with African Americans. We all felt as if we knew this story. Whether it was Trayvon, stop and frisk, or any of the ways the criminal justice system has had a detrimental effect on our community. And that’s the story that needs to be told, and that’s not the story that’s being told right now. It really is a very personal narrative. Until we move away from the personal, I think this story is problematic,” Maynard said. “The way we have been looking at race in this story has been problematic. ‘George Zimmerman is Hispanic, so how can he be racist?’ These last few months have shown just because you are not a white male doesn’t necessarily mean you understand another community.”

That same day, the Maynard Institute started a Tumblr blog, the Faces of Black Men. The site encourages users to contribute images and stories “so we can begin to present a more accurate picture of African American boys and men.”

This is a tragedy and a crisis. But it is also an opportunity: long overdue dialogue is finally happening. We encourage local communities to work with their young people—the leaders of tomorrow—to address this systemic problem.

Update: On April 11, George Zimmerman was charged with second-degree murder in the killing of Trayvon Martin. Read more about the charges at the Florida Times-Union. Arraignment scheduled for May 29.